So you’ve developed an app, whether by creating it yourself or paying a professional developer to implement your ideas, and perhaps run it past software testing services and launched it on one or more of the various app stores. Maybe it’s an app to support your business or make things easier for your customers. Perhaps it’s some handy tool or fun activity that you’ve always thought would make a good app. Whatever the case, it’s built and released, but users seem less than taken with it.
Negative reviews mean people aren’t liking your app, and it isn’t serving its purpose. On top of that, negative reviews will put other people off of even trying it out. If your app is attracting nothing but negativity, there are a few important steps you could consider taking.
Act Fast
The more your app attracts in the way of negative reviews, the harder it will be to get people to download an improved version and the more positive reviews you will need to balance out the negativity. Whether you switch straight to an updated and improved version or take it off sale until it’s been overhauled, do it as soon as possible. This is a simple matter of damage limitation.
Read Feedback
It’s not always easy to read criticism of your pet project, but it’s necessary if you want to find out how to improve. Read what people are actually saying and why they didn’t like the app. Is it buggy or failing to work on certain platforms? Is it lacking important features? People’s criticisms are a valuable guide for where your app needs improvement.
Find and Eliminate Bugs
Bugs and technical issues are probably the most common reason apps get bad reviews, especially on Android, where the sheer variety of hardware makes it likely that apps will encounter issues somewhere. If you haven’t done it before, consider seeking out professional software testing services, as thorough software testing is the key to eliminating bugs.
Publicise Your Improvements
To encourage people to give your app another chance despite the negative reviews, you need to let them know that it’s improved. At the very least, this means putting the information prominently in the description. A full-on advertising campaign, however, can be all the more effective.
